2nd member quits Justin Trudeau's Cabinet over allegations against Canadian PM

Former Canadian Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould arrives to give her testimony about the SNC-LAVALIN affair before a justice committee hearing on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, February 27, 2019.

Treasury board president Jane Philpott, considered a star minister, said in a resignation letter that it was "untenable" for her to continue in the Cabinet because she lost confidence and could not defend the Government.

Philpott said she was unhappy about the government's response to allegations that officials inappropriately pressured former justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould previous year to help major construction company SNC-Lavalin Group Inc avoid being tried for corruption.

"The solemn principles at stake are the independence and integrity of our justice system".

"Sadly, I have lost confidence in how the government has dealt with this matter and how it responded to the issues raised", Philpott said in a statement. "There can be a cost to acting on one's principles, but there is a bigger cost to abandoning them".

She will remain on as a Liberal member of Parliament.

At a Liberal party rally in Toronto, Trudeau said he was taking Philpott's concerns seriously. She took a decision, I respect her decision. Many were already lining up to express their fealty Monday. If it's convicted, SNC-Lavalin could be banned from federal contracts for 10 years.

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February 7 - Citing unnamed sources, the Globe and Mail newspaper reports that Trudeau's aides attempted to press Wilson-Raybould, while attorney general, to intervene in the prosecution of SNC-Lavalin, and that exasperation with her lack of co-operation was one reason for shuffling her out of the justice portfolio. Wilson-Raybould said last week she was convinced her refusal to help SNC-Lavalin was behind the demotion. It was a stunning decision from one of the prime minister's most senior cabinet ministers and plunged Trudeau's government further into crisis. "Expect us to make correct decisions, stand for what is right and exit when values are compromised", she tweeted.

The testimony from Wilson-Raybould threatens to badly damage their chances. Maybe Butts will offer evidence undermining Wilson-Raybould. Both testified earlier at the committee but that was before Wilson-Raybould fingered Wernick as the person who allegedly issued veiled threats and suggested Drouin was a witness to some of the pressure tactics.

Trudeau wanted Wilson-Raybould to consider inviting SNC-Lavalin to submit to a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) that would include acknowledgement of guilt, financial penalties, and require future undertakings to prevent wrongdoings.

Assembly of First Nations B.C. Regional Chief Terry Teegee toldAPTN News that Philpott quickly earned First Nations leaders' trust and support when she was appointed minister of Indigenous services in August 2017.

A group of five former attorneys general (four Conservatives, one NDP) have also written to the RCMP commissioner, pointing to the lobbying efforts made by SNC-Lavalin and the subsequent pressure on the justice minister, who was also the attorney general of Canada, as evidence of interference by the prime minister in an ongoing criminal prosecution. Treasury Board is a less-visible ministry concerned with the nuts and bolts of government operations but the president effectively holds the government's purse strings, overseeing all federal spending.

Celina Caesar-Chavannes, a Liberal legislator who is not seeking re-election, tweeted that "when you add women, please do not expect the status quo". I think it's to prove a point - that this is their party as much as Trudeau's, and they shouldn't have to leave just because he screwed up. So, what do we make of these cabinet losses?

Opposition politicians have jumped on the controversy and have accused the Liberals of a cover-up and want a full public inquiry.

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